May 0526

what I’ve created –

• Houston 0126
• Feb / Mar on iPhone

what I’ve listened to –

• Phantom — Til Now
• Marginalia #224 — Masakatsu Takagi
• Meet — Soft Lipa
• fuego — BNYX
• I’m Still Fine — Red Clay Strays

quote I liked –

“Mountains are not stadiums where I satisfy my ambition to achieve, they are the cathedrals where I practice my religion.” — Anatoli Boukreev

“Greatness takes guts. And often, it’s the courage to eliminate the things you can do fairly well so you have the capacity to do one thing exceptionally well. Have the courage to take more off your plate.”— JC

“To love anything good is a bargain, at any cost.” — Wendell Berry, Jayber Crow

“What you reach for when things get uncomfortable tells you what you’re trying not to feel” .— MM

“Many situations in life are similar to going on a hike: the view changes once you start walking. You don’t need all the answers right now. New paths will reveal themselves if you have the courage to get started.” — JC

“What are you still carrying that isn’t yours and is weighing you down?” Rita Wilkins Source: A Heart-to-Heart Conversation

Luck flows through people and travels by conversation. The people you talk to determine the opportunities you find. Keep talking to the same people, keep finding the same opportunities. Start talking to new people, start finding new opportunities. If you want different luck, start walking into different rooms.” – JC 

No matter how busy you are, you must take time to make the other person feel important. Everyone has an invisible sign hanging from their neck saying, “Make me feel important.” Never forget this message when working with people.”  Source: Mary Kay on People Management (paraphrased)

“Most people chase a million dollars in the bank and ignore the million-dollar body that actually buys them” — anonymous 

“Do not merely think that you are going to become great; think that you are great now. Do not think that you will begin to act in a great way at some future time; begin now. Do not think that you will act in a great way when you reach a different environment; act in a great way where you are now. Do not think that you will begin to act in a great way when you begin to deal with great things; begin to deal in a great way with small things.” Wallace Wattles Source: The Science of Being Great

“Ego so high I love that you hate me” — back of a stranger’s t-shirt

what I think about modern travel –

We live in a world now where travel has become more accessible than ever before. Not only has the price and access become so low but we could practically wake up tomorrow anywhere in the world. A trip that would have been impossible for our grandparents is my spring break at 15 years old. Columbus’ route isn’t impressive but a Tuesday afternoon. Westward expansion happens in 2hrs.  

That said— we have a new order and generation of youth whose experiences are unlike anyone else in time. 

At its best, we can now more than ever become more learned of the world and its cultures. Travel opens our eyes to truth and exposes us to realize the world is much bigger than us and can provide a sense of grounding and perspective on scale—essentially removing ego. It connects us with others who share similar perspectives and experiences. We realize that the dynamics of siblings in the states may not be that different than siblings growing up in New Zealand. The result is realization that the world is really big, we are very small, and yet—so similar to our brothers and sisters all around it. 

The cost of the access is that the youth are more at risk of (1) becoming detached from their home or community and we lose localization. This negatively impacts families and legacy the most. Used to you would live where you were born, work with your father’s trade, marry someone in your town, and die there too. That has only really changed in the last 50-100 years. If youth now think they must travel or leave home and it only costs $50-$500 and they already “know” people via social media then there’s less preventing them from changing their life for better or worse. The American dream has shifted to experience and access and we’ve lost the family along the way. 

The second risk of this access to travel is we don’t realize its gift. Youth assume it’s owed to them because it’s seen so often in life—especially via social media. What we’re born into we imagine is how it always is and will be. But even our parents didn’t have this degree of access. 

For the American—  we must determine what the evolution of travel and the loss of affordable travel (spirit) AND the lack of high speed rail systems will have on the American culture, perspective, and youth. 

Will it result in the access shifting to a higher income bracket or the elite? Will the American people lose even more perspective on the world and its people and as a result grow even more divided and scared? 

Separately we question if this access could mean that someone can be from “planet earth” rather than their town, city, state, or country? If we use the logic that if you are raised in Texas but then live the majority of your life in Florida, you’re now a Floridian not a Texan, we must ask at what amount of travel does someone become “from the world or earth” rather than any specific place? How does this affect identity and what does it mean for the youth who are raised this way or live this way? I met a girl who lives between Rome and Paris and was in LA for the time, but where does her identity of home come from? Is it the town or house she was raised in? Is it possible that the shifting and “un-grounded-ness” could produce a negative result? Or is she the most aware, both culturally and personally? 

Additionally— how does this new access impact relationships? The blessing of this technology is that we can FaceTime someone across the world instantly or travel to them tomorrow but the cost may be that we have a new area of life or value alignment that wasn’t a part of the equation before. Drawing from the earlier example of our hypothetical grandparents who were born, lived, met, married, worked, and died in the same town— they didn’t need to ask the questions of “would I move across the world for you?” “Do you want to travel as much as I do or to the same places I want to go?” These are modern problems and maybe even first degree ones at that but it truly is a unique time to be alive.  

what I discovered –

• Ancient Chinese proverb confirms that we should host dinners with our friends as often as possible, it’s always life-giving.
• Mercato Centrale – Incredible food hall in Florence with too many options to choose from
• La Buchetta – A return highlight from 2025, still the best gnocchi on the planet and maybe the best ravioli as well. Worth flying into Florence for.

what I wouldn’t try again –

Be a man and say everything with your chest. Own your mistakes and move with confidence.

Get tires a little sooner than you think you need them. Maybe you can squeeze out that 2000 mile road trip to Utah and back but you won’t want to change it on the side of the highway at 11pm after spending 8hrs getting a tattoo.

how life is beautiful –

Life feels beautiful. Spending time with friends and family will always feel worth it. May was filled with travel but lots of laughter and familiar faces and places.

Sitting in the river in Zion national park with the sun on my back, legs tired from Angels Landing, and cold water rushing around me was a moment of serenity and peace that I chase.

Standing over Florence with an old friend watching the clouds roll in silence for five minutes was one of the best five minutes of my life.

The Dolomites might be the most beautiful place on earth inch for inch. There’s not a dull area, every square foot is picturesque. I’m happy to have spent some time there.

From off-roading in Utah and biking through Denmark, to dancing at lakefront raves in Italy and laughing over dinner in California. From watching close friends get married to driving through Midwest cornfields at sunset with my sister or getting lost in the Dolomites with my uncle—May was a truly good month.